Twisted Tales - The Little Mermaid and Snow White

Here are the next two fairy tale illustrations in my 'Twisted' series. I decided to show Snow white as a "Yeah, I know I'm good!" kinda gal, and the Little Mermaid who decided there was more than one way to be like a human. I hope you like them!!

Twisted Tales - Alice in Wonderland & Little Red Riding Hood

These are the first two images for my new ‘Twisted Tales’ series of illustrations. Pictured, of course is Alice in Wonderland and Little Red. I wanted to give a new edge to some classic fairy tale characters, rather than show them as they have been shown again and again and again. I will be doing some more characters soon – watch this space!

maths Aliens for kids

Here is a selection of the 12 alien characters I created for a young children's teachers aid. They each have a set of multiplication tables on their bellies and will be used as posters and such in the UK. They were so much fun to create! I think young kids should love them :)

A Celtic/Oriental feel

I created this character today. She started as an old sketch I did years ago (while I was still at school, I think). I thought that she was worth re-visiting. For such a quick image I thik I'm really happy with her. Her costume and setting is kind of a clash between oriental and celtic, but I think it works OK. She has kind of a Briar Rose look about her.

Geisha

Here is an image I created in Adobe Illustrator a few months ago. I'm still not completely happy with it, but like so many of my images, it will probably just be left as is (at least for the time being). I may come back to her and add some more detail and colour. I think she is too bland for a geisha - she needs more colour!!

Back to Basics...

It has been a long while between posts I know! I thought I would start off again by refreshing my basic skills. Here is a really quick pencil portrait from my sketchbook. I thought I would copy one of my favourite old portraits. The original just intregued me - and I had to copy it! Well, they do say; if you're going to copy - copy from the best! Hope you like it :)

Dancer girls

I have been illustrating some dancer characters. Each character has a different dance style, everything from ballet - to street and hip hop. This is such a fun project, I love costumes, and I think dancing showcases some of the best!

Some developments on my comic characters

I must admit that this project has been placed on the back-bench for quite some time!!
But, here are just a couple more images that I have done. I figure if I post them here, it may remind me to get back into the project! Hopefully it works :)

Squirrel and possum

I did the top illustration late last year, for my uncle and auntie in England. They have the most beautiful back garden. As we don't get squirrels in Australia, one of my favourite things while I was staying in England was to watch the squirrels go about their business.
Underneath is a cartoon I did of an Australian ring-tail possum. Also, extreemly cute creatures. This possum was done as a concept for a children's book I'm currently illustrating. While this particular illustration won't be used, I thought it was quite cute.

Handbag Butler

Click image for a bigger and better view :)
Here is an illustration I have recently completed for a new product called 'Handbag-Butler'. The product is one of those jewelled hooks that you can hand off a table when you are out. You hang your handbag off these hooks, which makes them easily accesible and of course keeps them off the dirty floor! This is a little image I created to illustrate how the product works.

Gold Fish in watercolour

First of all, let me just say "WOW - time passes so quickly!!" I cannot believe it is May already, that means I have not posted on this blog in 5 months! I have been doing so much more illustration work - but this seems to be all that I have on this computer at the moment. This is a watercolour and Ink painting I did perhaps two or three months ago. I quite like the design, and it was good to paint something by hand again! Although I am a little out of practise now!

Comic Book heroes

Here is my progress so far with my comic book. I'm having so much fun illustrating the characters, but they are still a working progress. Any advice on how to improve them is most welsome! From the left is Constantine, Arrabella, Talliesin, Lillyana, Zamboosha and kneeling is Charis. Hope you like them! Click on the image to get a much better and bigger view :)

Illustration Friday - scale

This is Anubis - Egyptian protector of the underworld. After they died, an Egyptian's heart would be weighed on a 'scale' by Anubis, against the "feather of Ma'at" (the feather of truth/justice), and then judged by Osiris (the god of life and death). A pure heart would be equal in weight to that of the feather of Ma'at, and the person would be able to live for the rest of eternity in peace. If the person's heart was heavy with burdon, however, it would weigh more than the feather of Ma'at, and the Egyptian with the heavy heart would be fed to Osiris' vicious baboon, Babi or fed to Ammit, the "bone devourer". In the event that a heart was lighter than the feather of Ma'at, that Egyptian would be sent to an area of Duat called "Aaru", a realm ruled by Osiris where Egyptians could exist in pleasure for all eternity.
I find Egyptian mythology very interesting, and decided that this would be a perfect interperatation for this weeks theme 'scale'.

Arrabella - comic book character

I am developing a comic-type book that I will write and illustrate myself, and I decided to share my first character with you. Her name is Arrabella (I have always loved those pretty names!).
As I am a devoted recycler, I have used the same facial features as is on Mhina (one of my earlier posts). In fact the bottom drawing has almost the exact same face! I'm not lazy - I just really liked the character, so I re-created her image to fit my story. (And maybe I am a little lazy). Anyway - I hope you like her so far - I may share some of the other characters once I am happy with them. Enjoy - comments or suggested improvemets are welcome!

Painting

A while back there was a charity sale where a number of artists created un-signed pieces of work, all on the same sized canvas. My boss actually suggested that I do a painting for it, and this is what I came up with. It was atually my first completed painting done in acrylics, so I was quite happy with it. I was even more pleased when my painting sold in a reasonably short period of time! I hope you enjoy it - any comments are welcome!

More colaborative pieces

Here are a couple of the other pieces my friend and I did - enjoy!!

Colaboration pieces.

With some help of a friend of mine, we have come up with some images. These are known as RetroSwor images. See Sworlord's link for more of her fantastic work! Basically, how these images work is that Swor hand-sketched the people and I added the colour digitally in Illustrator. We each have very different styles, and I think they work really well together - we are both extreemly happy with the outcome.

I'm gonna make you an offer you can't refuse...

SOLD!! (Click for a clearer view)
Here is Marlon Brando as the Godfather. I have never seen the film before but, after a request to draw this portrait I have developed a new interest. Hmmm, this may have to be a must for weekend viewing. In any case - I hope I captured his character ok - I think the client was very pleased! This scan came out a little dark - but I think this may add to the effect? Comments are welcome!

One Funky Munky!

Click for a larger, clearer view.
This is another quick digital image i drew a little while ago. I wanted to make her look as funky and retro as possible, with a mix of 50's and 60's flavour and fashion. I am thinking of sending her and a few other samples to a greeting card publisher. I would love to illustrate a series of cards - so we'll se how we go!!

Portrait - Marilyn Monroe

This is a portrait I have just finished, it only took about and hour and a half, which I was happy with. I think that she has turned out quite well, maybe I like it better than my first portrait of Marilyn (which is in an earlier post) I hope that you think so too!

I know, I know. You've seen him before...

First of all - I am SO SORRY I have been away for so long!
But, here is another image of Ziggy Stardust. Man, I'm sad! I promise it will be last of him for a while. But, I saw this photo of him, and I had to copy it! I've left his costume in balck and white, and just aded flat colour to his skin, hair and eyes. I think it looks quite good as is.
Stay tuned though, I am working on some more portraits... I will post them soon!!

It's a fine line between Geeky and Cool...

Click image for larger view.
Some people are so Geeky, they're cool. Or visa versa. Many of the best 'cool' people have been so alternative, so outlandish and fantastical - we didn't even realise they were a nerd. Alternatively, some were just so obviously Geeky and didn't care - and that made them cool. Either way, I like people like that - Rock on Geeks!!

That's Life! #2

Here is an illustration I did a while ago for That's Life! magazine. After thinking it had been rejected - I was pleased to find it featured in this weeks issue. It is an illustration for one of their short stories. If you want to know what the story was - you will have to buy the magazine!!! Enjoy.

I wish I had her dress

Click image for better, larger view.
Hey-ho! Here with a new fashion design -thingy.
Again, this was based on a sketch I did around a year or two ago. I thought I would make it into a vibrant colour version. I have also been experimenting with backgrounds lately. I never used to like doing them - but I have started to enjoy it! This is fantastic, because I think my images need a setting of some sort. I still cheat a little by using some image templates from Illustrator (eg the water lilly) but, I'm hoping to phase these out soon, and use all my own stuff!
Any comments are very welcome!!

Mhina - digital chick

Click image for a closer view - is looks MUCH better that way!

Sorry I have been away for so long!!! Work has been super busy, and the last thing I want to do when I get home is use a computer - I don't even want to look at a computer!
But, here is a quick illustration done on the weekend. Another fashion icon, Mhina. I drew her about a year ago, and up until now she has just been a sketch - I have finally digitised her. I think she has turned out quite well - and while drawing her up I discovered something... the 'feather' tool in Adobe Illustrator. An awesome tool, I can't believe I have survived so long without it! Anyway - enjoy, any comments are welcome!

Some wierd chick.

Umm, this was a costume sketch I did some years ago. I decided she may look good digitised. She looks like a wierd kind of woman that would live all alone in a castle. HaHa - but she intregues me.

Illustration Friday - suit

When I saw this weeks topic I thought 'YAY!!'
I have just been looking through work from my 'fashion Passion' days and thought I would like to get back into it. So here is Phoebe, in her suit.
Stay tuned, there are more to come!!

Fashion Passion!

When I was at high school I was obsessed with costume design. As I continued to draw, the costumes became more and more bizzar and fun. I stopped doing these for some reason, but have decided to re-visit some of them. I shall 'digitise' them and post the results. Here's the first - heavily inspired by one of my favourite films 'the Fifth Element.' This futuristic costume would have fit right in!!!

Illustration Friday - car 2

And, here is the second car I drew when I was 17. Again, in Tria Markers. This one is actually my Uncle's Morgan, I gave the original drawing to him for Christmas a few years ago.

Illusration Friday - cars

When I first read the topic for this weeks Illustration Friday, I thought 'Oh No!!'
I don't even drive a car - I hate them!
But, looking back through my Tafe work the other day I found these pictures I did in Tria Markers. These were done in my first year of study, when I was 17. But hey, they're not too bad - are they?

Ziggy Stardust

Click on the images to see it larger - it looks better that way!!
The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars is one of my favourite albums. And, in the enclosed booklet features one of my favourite Bowie photos - I just had to sketch it! The top image is my original drawing, which I then scanned and did my digital thang with!!

Illustration Friday - Sign

(Click on images for a MUCH better view - please!!)
I chose to use, perhaps one of the most famous of celebrities - Marilyn Monroe. She was a sign of her era, her class, a sign of beauty, fame and tragedy.

Here's Johnny!!

Unfortunately, my fixiter made the charcoal on this portrait run a bit - so he didn't turn out as I would have liked. But, for all you Johnny Depp fans (I know there are MANY of you out there!) here he is. Enjoy.

That's Life!

In this month's issue of 'Thats Life' mag is my illustration!!! I entered a competition with this image and it won - how exciting for me!
(Sorry, I just had to brag!)

Illustration Friday - neighbour

If cats rule the world, then this was my neighbour. I don't know its name, and I don't know where it came from. But, for a time I was blessed with a sleek, quiet and very opulent neighbour.

And now for something ... completely different

A Collie dog, named Locky.
This is my brothers' gorgeous rough-coat collie, Lockey. I drew this for him as a Christmas present a couple of years ago. It is now displayed in my brothers Lounge room.

Mary-Kay digitised!

Here is the same charecter - as a digital illustration. Did I mention Mary-Kay is in a band? I had done two other band members, but weren't happy with them, so they were scrapped. Anyway, this image was done in Illustrator, using gradients and mesh. Its not the best example of a digital illustration using this technique - but its not too bad.

'Cos we are living in a material world...

Here is something a little bit different. This is a character, Mary-Kay I created a couple of years ago. She started out just as a marker illustration, but I thought that was just a little too boring. So instead I created this collage from pieces of material.

I would like to say that I cut each piece of material out myself - but I can't. I tried, but it was too hard and too boring. Instead, I cheated and scanned in the original sketch of Mary-Kay, and various pieces of material. I then imported them all into Photoshop and used the sketch as a template to 'cut' or 'punch' through the material. And there you have it - Mary-Kay, material girl.

And All That Jazz...

Here is one of my ficticious album covers. Something a little art-deco and fun. Hope you like it!

Some of my favourite stars

Here are some portraits of my favourite people. Anthony Hopkins, Michael Wincott, and Isobella Rosellinni. Threee very talented and beautiful people.

When I'm bored...

These are what happen. If ever I have a spare few hours, Digiters are born. I suppose they have become an obsession. But, that isn't such a bad thing - what else would I do with that time?

The top one was inspired by a photo of an African woman I saw. She had the most beautiful eyes, and stunning blue-black skin.
The second, Labyrinth. My most favourite movie of all time!
The third is the Little Mermaid. She was illustated with 'Alice' for the chocolate box - but she hasn't been recovered yet.

I forgot!!!

My trademark illustration! I can't believe I forgot it until now, it should have been on my first post.
This is Alice. I originally created her for a chocolate box design called 'Old Classics.' But, the box was never completed, and for around four months Alice went un-used. After this time, I decided to use her for the cover of the children's classic "Alice Through the Looking-Glass.' Since then, Alice has been used as my personal trade-mark. You can find her on my bisiness card, portfolio, and now on my blog! I hope you like her, she has served me well.

Comission Pieces

Here are two Digiters I did for friends. Basically, one friend gave me still-shots from a movie, and the other said "could you do pengiuns?"
So here are the results. The movie-still piece needs some work done still. The two characters don't look sinister enough, and I forgot the all-important duct-tape!! (Fans of the film will understand!) So, with some minor adjustments to the illustration - I think it will be just about finished.

Hand-painted portraits

Here's some more art. Portraits done the 'traditional' way. These were done in watercolour, with charcoal for detail. I have sold some of these portraits, and love doing custom ones of peoples' family and friends.

Digiters

Here are some portraits I have done. Using Adobe Illustrator, and my much loved Wacom, I create these from photos. It is a style I have developed over the years, and is constantly evolving into something new. These are basically digital caricatures, so I have dubbed them 'Digiters.' Recently I entered an illustration competition. I used this same style, I illustrated a cafe scene - but, because of the difference in subject it looks very different!

I have accepted many requests as to who I should illustrare next - and more are always welcome!

Introduction

This is my first Blog site, so please bare with me while I find my way around!
Here I will be posting my artwork and illustration, and whatever else I find of interest, I suppose.
I don't know yet.

So, welcome to Retrocharrm Art!
Influenced by the ever so charming artwork of the 40's and 50's, I like to create artwork and illustration that is a little bit different. You will find that portraits are a favourite subject of mine. But, I am hoping to branch out into other subjects soon.